U-shaped carriers have been employed for use in light waveguide cables, particularly cables having light waveguide ribbons for high fiber count applications. The U-shaped carriers comprise two legs, each leg mounted at its proximal end to the same side of a base. The other end of each leg, called the distal end, usually supports an overlying binder tape or other cable layer. Each leg has an inner wall facing the other leg and an outer wall opposite the other leg.
Whereas a cable having U-shaped carriers has processing advantages over a slotted core cable, the demands of crush testing presents problems unique to cables employing U-shape carriers. Under stress, the carriers may tip over or the legs of a U-shaped carrier may deform or break. Carrier failure may lead to transmission failure of the light waveguide ribbons held therein. Depending on the exact mode of failure, the light waveguide ribbons may be twisted or crushed, leading to unacceptable attenuation. By way of example, carrier legs may break or bend at their proximal ends, that is, the ends joined to the carrier base. If this occurs, the ribbons are likely to be pressed upon by the folded leg (if the leg has folded inward toward the other leg of the carder) or by the overlying cable layer (if the leg has folded outward). An object of the invention is to design optical cables such that they will have crush failure modes which predictably will have the smallest effect on the ribbons held therein without sacrificing overall carrier strength.